MCS 2100 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Intestacy, Life Insurance, Community Property

• School: University of Guelph
• Department: Marketing and Consumer Studies
• Course: MCS 2100
• Professor: Jian Zhou

Document Summary

Will: legal document outlines how estate will be settled. Formal will requires attorney assistance and signed in presence of 2 witnesses. Wills are revoked when marriage occurs unless otherwise stipulated in the will. Should specify: that all debt, fees, and taxes be paid; Appoint guardianship of children (not binding - court can override); State amount of time beneficiaries need to survive you and outlines what happens if they die with you; Any charitable gifts (which will reduce the tax liability of the estate); Specify the executor (person in charge of settling the estate and distributing the assets, are entitled to payment though often are not as family); Codicil is document revising conditions of an existing will, used when there are not many changes. Trust is a method to formally designate a person/institution to manage assets; can be used to protect funds from creditors/manage assets of dependents.